The Congress party has launched a new attack on Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch. The party alleged that Madhabi Puri Buch not only traded Rs 36.9 crore in listed securities while working in SEBI, but also invested in Chinese funds. Congress party spokesperson Pawan Kheda made these allegations while holding a press conference on Saturday, September 14. He said that Madhabi Buch made these investments between 2017 and 2023.
Pawan Khera said, “For the last several days, we have made several revelations about SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri. We asked questions to many banks and companies, some of them replied that they had given money to Agora. But the questions we asked Mahindra & Mahindra company have not been answered yet. In which we had told that Mahindra & Mahindra had given money to Madhabi’s husband Dhawal Buch and his company ‘Agora’.”
He said, “Madhabi Puri Buch was trading in listed securities between 2017-2023 while working in SEBI. During this time, she did trading of about 37 crores, which is a direct violation of SEBI rules. In such a situation, the question is why Madhabi lied that Agora is a dormant company. Then Madhabi lied that when I was renting my house, I did not know that the company was associated with Walkhardt.”
Pawan Khera further said, “Madhabi Puri Buch had some foreign assets between 2017-21. In such a situation, we want to ask 3 questions. First – to which government agency did Madhabi first inform about her foreign assets? Second – Was Madhabi not associated with ‘Agora Partners PTE Singapore’? Third – Why was Madhabi investing in Chinese funds?”
Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband denied the allegations
Earlier, Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhawal Buch on Friday denied the old allegations leveled by the Congress regarding regularity and conflict of interest, saying that these allegations are ‘false, motivated and an attempt to tarnish the reputation’. Buch denied the allegations against him point by point and said that a clear pattern of ‘distorting facts’ is emerging. He also hinted at taking appropriate legal action in this matter.
In a joint statement, the Buch couple said that the allegations against them are based on illegally collected information which is a violation of privacy laws. They said that these allegations are being made in installments with the intention of keeping the matter heated.
The Butch couple said in a six-page statement, “If the aim was to get to the truth instead of distorting facts and defaming individuals and organisations, why were all the allegations not made public at once? Then we would have given all the facts at once.”
The statement came after the Congress alleged that Madhabi Puri Buch earned income from ICICI Bank even after retirement and gave her property on rent to a Wockhardt associate firm. The Congress has also made allegations regarding the consultancy services provided by Dhaval Buch and his two companies – Agora Advisory in India and Agora Partners in Singapore.
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